A prime bit of hair-on-fire disinformation appeared as a letter to the Leavenworth Times on Dec. 27, 2013.

It was filled with suppositions founded in sand, and it cited certain statistics so as to suggest that the percentage of concealed carry holders who are also mentally ill matched the percentage in the populace-at-large.

That bit of legerdemain was eased by a failure to note that each permit applicant must pass a number of hurdles, including a check by the Sheriff's Office, a check intended to uncover and disqualify any applicant falling in the unsuitable category.

Unless the Sheriff's Office is incompetent, we should instead expect that those approved for concealed carry are as a group much less crooked or mentally ill than the population-at-large.

Don't answer out loud, but consult with yourself.

If you happen one day to be faced unarmed by an armed bad guy with blood in his eye, would you not hope that a concealed carrier would be nearby to help?